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Photo by Brian Moody Three years prior to the Rwandan genocide, Jean Paul Samputu, at the time a rising star on the East African music scene, spent six months in jail alongside thousands of other Tutsis who had been arrested in their homes. The jails were overflowing, so the government finally released the prisoners but… more

Photograph by Louisa Hext Samantha Lawler’s mother was murdered by her father in 1999 at the family home in Ft Lauderdale, Florida. Her father admitted to strangling his wife, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and rape and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Thirteen years later, Samantha visited her father in prison –… more

In 2004 Cathy Harrington’s 26-year old daughter, Leslie, was murdered in a brutal attack in her own home. It was Halloween night when the killer broke in, also taking the life of another of Leslie’s housemates. A year later, after an extensive police investigation, Eric Copple admitted to the crimes. Copple is now serving two… more

Photo by Brian Moody In August 2008 Liz Brereton’s 21-year-old daughter, Ruth, was killed in a car crash travelling back from Portsmouth to her home in Croydon. Two years later the driver of the car received a two year prison sentence for causing death by dangerous driving and was banned from driving for two years.… more

Photo by Brian Moody Dave Dineen first encountered sexual abuse at the age of seven. Through a stormy childhood he found himself placed in the care of a religious institution in Cork. His healing journey has been about learning to live with a difficult past. He is the CEO and Founder of LÁMH Healing Foundation… more

Photograph by Brian Moody In 2008 Tim and Grace Idowu’s third child, 14-year-old David, was murdered in the park opposite his home in South London. The perpetrator was 16-year-old Elijah Dayoni who later received a minimum sentence of 12 years. In 2010 Grace met Elijah at a restorative justice conference at Ashfield Young Offenders Institute. The… more

Assaad Emile Chaftari served as a senior intelligence official in the Christian militia during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990) and was responsible for many deaths. In 2000, he wrote a letter of apology to all his victims which was then published in the national Lebanese press. Since then he has dedicated his life to peace… more

In 1977 at the age of 14, Sokreaksa “Reaksa” Himm saw 13 members of his family murdered by Khmer Rouge soldiers in the Killing Fields of Cambodia. Miraculously surviving the massacre, Reaksa swore revenge against the men responsible for the loss of his family. Years later, after surviving the horrors of refugee camps and roving… more

Photograph by Kalilu Totangi In 1991 when the civil war broke out in Sierra Leone, Brima Koker joined the rebel RUF (Revolutionary United Front) army to fight against Government forces. The war lasted until 2002 and left more than 50,000 people dead and over two million people displaced in neighbouring countries. The organisation Fambul Tok,… more

Photograph by Kalilu Totangi Satta Joe was a victim of the Sierra Leone Civil War (1991-2002). She lives in the Kono District – an area with rich diamond reserves which experienced devastation during the war when looting and constant fighting took place between the RUF (Revolutionary United Front) rebels and Government forces. The war left… more

“I am just overwhelmed…thank you so much for this wonderful page! I can’t stop reading and reading and reading.”

Website visitor

“I would use the word “healing” to describe seeing my story on The Forgiveness Project website.”

Susan, website story

“This site cracked open my heart, and made me look at the world in general and my life in particular in a new way. Brace yourself. It may haunt you. The issue addressed here – forgiveness – could save our world. I am rarely as moved by a single site as I was by this one”

H. Mata, USA

“I have been reading your extraordinary website over several months and find the stories a marvellous reflection on how amazing the human spirit can be.”

Website visitor

“I want to thank the project for sharing, for being available. I am going through something very difficult in my life right now. It’s as though I’m walking a mountain’s ridge; to one side lies the barren valley of anger, and to the other runs the river of forgiveness and inspiration. Through the on line stories, the project has helped my journey. Thank you.”

Sam, USA

I was very deeply moved by the well-chosen stories you selected … Such stories vibrating with humanity are better than books of theory.